The wide receiver out of Notre Dame played out his rookie contract of four years, $3.4 million for the Seattle Seahawks and will now explore his value in the open market.

As far as the Seahawks are concerned, the acquisition of Percy Harvin last offseason makes Tate expendable to an extent. Harvin showed a glimpse of the dynamic playmaker he could be down the line for the ‘Hawks in their Super Bowl victory over the Denver Broncos on Feb. 2 with a spectacular return touchdown. With Tate slated to get a salary bump in the open market, it makes sense for both sides to part ways given the ‘Hawks limited cap space.

The Lions could use a threat underneath to provide more balance opposite superstar Calvin Johnson.

The Seahawks drafted Tate with the No. 60 overall pick in the second round of the 2010 NFL draft.

Michael C. Jones is the managing editor and founder of Sports Out West and a Southern California-based sports journalist. His credits include Yahoo Sports and Bleacher Report, among many others. You can catch up with him on Twitter: @MikeJonesTweets.